Freya expected the Lycan to shift into his human form before replying to her questions, but instead, something extraordinary happened that left her completely stunned.
The massive wolf opened its jaw, and a distinctly human voice emerged from its throat: deep, warm, and surprisingly gentle.
"My name is Darius Ravenstorm."
Freya was taken aback, her ocean-blue eyes widening in shock as she stared at the enormous creature before her. The sound of a human voice coming from the wolf's mouth was so surreal that for a moment, she wondered if she was hallucinating.
Then the knowledge came flooding back to her: fragments of ancient history she had read during her childhood before her exile. Lycans couldn't shift unless on a full moon, but they were powerful enough to do what ordinary werewolves couldn't do.
"So they speak in their wolf forms instead?" She thought and blinked several times, trying to process this revelation, then began to listen more intently to the wolf before her.
His voice was nothing like what she had expected from a creature she had been taught to fear and destroy.
"You asked me a lot of questions at once. Where would you like me to start from, pretty one?" Darius asked with a small chuckle, his tone remarkably lighthearted for such a tense situation.
"Pretty one?" Freya's mind couldn't help but repeat that in her head. It wasn't really the compliment that got to her, it was the warmth in Darius' tone, the one she hadn't heard in years.
And to Freya's complete astonishment, his chuckle: it was a rich, warm sound that seemed to bubble up from somewhere deep within his chest. The laugh was so genuine, so unexpectedly pleasant, that it sent an odd flutter through her stomach.
She was utterly shocked that a Lycan could be that lighthearted. Everything she'd been taught, apart from what the Moon Goddess had even said, had painted the Lycans as vicious, soulless beasts driven only by bloodlust and an insatiable hunger for destruction. This creature before her seemed to possess more humanity than most werewolves she had encountered.
"Should I start from when I first saw you, on the very first day you stepped into the wilderness?" Darius continued, tilting his enormous head slightly in a gesture that seemed endearing.
The words hit Freya like a bolt of lightning and her mind raced back to that terrible day: the day her world had crumbled around her. When the eight-year-old girl had wandered aimlessly inti the vast wilderness.
She remembered collapsing under a large oak tree, sobbing until her throat was raw, convinced she was going to die alone in the forest.
But when she had awakened the following morning, something miraculous had happened. Someone had covered her small, shivering form with layers upon layers of soft leaves, creating a natural blanket that had kept her warm through the cold night. She could also see a small spot where it seemed fire had crackled overnight.
Her eight-year-old self hadn't questioned the miracle. She had simply assumed it was her creator who had sent divine help her way, a sign that she wasn't completely abandoned after all.
Darius chuckled again as if he knew exactly what she thought at that moment, the sound even more appealing this time, warm and rich.
"That was you..." She whispered, her voice not really audible but before Darius could reply her, her mouth flew open as realization dawned on her as the memories came crashing on her with startling clarity.
"Then you were the one who was always dropping bush meat for me for a whole week before I moved to another place in the wilderness?" She asked, her eyes widening in shock and Darius' twinkled with something that could only be described as fondness.
"The meat was always fresh and it was always left where I could easily find it, but never where other predators might discover it first." She said slowly more to herself, pieces of a puzzle she hadn't even known existed falling into place.
Her young mind had attributed it to divine providence, never imagining that a living being was watching over her.
"You were observant, even as a child." Darius noted, and she could hear the smile in his voice even though his wolf form couldn't physically produce one.
"Why? Why did you do all that for me? You didn't even know me." Freya asked curiously.
Darius was quiet for a moment, his massive form shifting slightly as he seemed to consider his words carefully.
"I had no explanation or tangible reason, I just saw a young girl in need and decided to help out in my little way." He said finally, his voice carrying genuine bewilderment, as if the question had puzzled him for years. He paused then continued:
"It was that instinct to protect you that became a habit and I found myself hovering around you, even locating your new places after you moved. Over the years, I've watched you grow from that frightened little girl into the strong woman standing before me now." He admitted.
Freya's breath hitched at the revelation. This creature: this supposedly vicious, bloodthirsty beast had been her guardian angel for years without her knowing it. He had watched over her through her most vulnerable moments, protected her from dangers she probably never even knew existed.
She stood silent for a moment and he stayed quiet too as if he was allowing her to digest the information. Then when she spoke up, she asked in incredulity:
"So you risking everything just to check on me, tonight?"
Before Darius could respond to that question, the sharp beam of flashlights suddenly illuminated the darkness, accompanied by authoritative voices that shattered the soft moment.
"Who is that? Identify yourself immediately!"
"What are you doing hovering around the pack's border at this time of night?" The guards' voices were sharp with authority and suspicion.
Freya's heart literally jumped, panic surging through her as she spun around toward the approaching lights. She checked and saw that the guards, although swiftly approaching, didn't seem to have seen the wolf she had been talking to as their gazes were on her.
She quickly turned back toward where Darius had been standing, wanting to tell him to run away but he had completely vanished, disappeared as silently and mysteriously as a smoke.
She was shocked at the perfect timing of his disappearance, but she heaved a sigh of relief that he had managed to escape detection.
The last thing either of them needed was for the pack guards to discover a Lycan so close to their territory, especially after the brutal attack earlier that evening.
"Thank you moon goddess!" She mumbled.
Then composing herself as best as she could, Freya quickly walked toward the approaching guards with measured steps, trying to project an air of casual confidence.
"It's just me, I was just taking a walk as I couldn't sleep." She called out.
"My Lady, you shouldn't have walked up to the pack's border at this time of the night. It's dangerous." One of the guards stepped forward, lowering his flashlight slightly when he recognized her face as the rogue their Alpha had brought in two days ago.
"I apologize, I didn't realize how far I had wandered. The events of tonight left me restless, and I needed some fresh air to clear my head." She said quickly.
The guards exchanged glances, their expressions softening slightly at her explanation.
"Of course. But please, for your own safety, stay closer to the manor grounds if you need to walk at night. We'll escort you back now." The lead guard offered and even though she wanted, Freya didn't bother to stop them from walking her.
She led while they followed behind.
As she walked back toward the manor, Freya found her mind unable to stop a memory of a particular day in the wilderness flooding back.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
FLASHBACK
It was around her second year in the wilderness.
"Father... Are you even looking for me at all?" Ten-year-old Freya had wondered with teary eyes.
She had been having an especially difficult week. A storm had destroyed her shelter, and she had been forced to take refuge in a small cave that offered little protection from the elements.
Food had been scarce, and she had been surviving on berries and whatever small creatures she could catch with her limited skills.
"What is that?" When she emerged from the cave that morning, hungry and dejected, she saw a spot where mysterious meals had appeared. But this time, her unknown benefactor had done something extraordinary.
The bush meat had been arranged in the most delightfully funny way, the pieces positioned to create what looked almost like a smiling face. Two round pieces of meat served as eyes, berries had been carefully placed to form eyebrows, and smaller strips of meat curved into an unmistakable grin.
Even the whiskers had been crafted from thin pieces of dried meat.
Little Freya had been so amused but the pang of hunger she was feeling at that moment didn't allow her to laugh and she had gratefully devoured the meal straight away.
She had thought that nature itself was trying to cheer her up during her darkest hour. The sight had been so unexpected, that it had lifted her spirits for days afterward.
END OF FLASHBACK
The memory of how Darius had been helping her all those years without showing his face filled her with a warmth she had forgotten could exist.
"All this time, I have thought I was completely alone in the world, abandoned by everyone and everything. But he has been there, watching over me...?" Freya sighed.
Now she realized that her unknown helper had been deliberately trying to communicate with her through the funny way he arranged the bush meat that day, as if to tell her to enjoy the meal and find reasons to smile even in the midst of her suffering.
Without realization, as she walked, Freya's lips curved upward in a genuine smile: something she didn't remember she knew how to do.
It had been so long since she had smiled, really and truly smiled, that the muscles in her face felt strange and unfamiliar as they formed the expression.